SamanthaD

3840 x 2160 is technically UHD, not 4k which is 4096 x 2160. But as that doesn't fit in with the 16:9 ratio we all know and love, UHD has had the "4k" label stuck on it, thanks mainly to consumer products.

Sorry, the way you wrote it I thought you were using copper to the projector, not doing more conversions etc. Guess running new cabling is out of the question? Either that or the only other link in the chain is the flylead? Mind you if you're saying this setup worked with older laptops but not your newer ones, then it might be a resolution issue - are the laptops trying to push out 4k to the projector?

Any break in the chain causes resistance and so effectively adds cable length. So if you have a 10m lead going from the projector to the faceplate, there will be a break as it goes to the faceplate pigtail, a 10cm lead, another break at the faceplate itself, then another 2/3m lead to the laptop. These breaks could add up to anything to an effective cable length of around 20m. I suggest swapping the faceplate out for a brushplate, and just using the cable that would go into the faceplate direct into your laptop as you have already done in your testing.Removes 2 breaks in the chain and means you don't lose any flyleads! Failing that you'll need a cable equaliser to amplify the signal.

Another thought - does it HAVE to be live? Could it not be pre-recorded and then put on a VLE to download and watch during the scheduled assembly time? That would definitely save on bandwidth, and if you've never streamed before will prevent a lot of headaches.

Doing it internally may make things a headache - multicast streams are potentially a network crippler if not set up correctly (I don't know how to set it up correctly, but have set it up incorrectly once - never again!) Some easy options are to use OBS to stream to YouTube, make the stream undiscoverable and email the link to the teachers. Lots of videos (on YouTube, strangely) on how to do this. I'm sure a few classrooms watching YouTube should be ok? Either that or a Teams event might work. Same sort of thing, but you can join multiple Teams calls into a stream which is then hosted on MS Stream. Might make things a little easier on the bandwidth.

Hand sanitiser provided in every space, to be used before touching any equipment. Keyboards / mice cleaned daily by cleaning staff. Microphones / remote clickers etc removed.

Should be more "And you're funding the extra technician we'll need to support this new, specialist service that doesn't exist anywhere else in the school?" Don't forget to add on the cost of a new Mac Pro to run as a server for the Mac network and handle software licensing etc...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x_aO0UmrzOc Shows you how to setup a Pi as a print release station.

Also - look on the flap of the socket. It should say on there what amperage it is. If you're unsure send us a photo and I'll work it out.

Ceeform plugs / sockets come in many varients. Blue indicates 240v (whereas Red is 415v / 3 phase and Yellow is 110v). The size relates to the amperage, so if you have a 16a plug that's too small for the socket you need a 32a connector (they come in 16a, 32, 63a or 125a. Anything over that uses Powerlock). Please be sure any step down adaptors have sufficient protection (and the cable is suitably sized), I recommend buying an off the shelf adaptor from a company such as Rubber Box or PCE. Something like this might be good for you?

+ the cost of someone going to the room to replace it... Our time costs money too, something that is often overlooked. At my hourly rate if I spend 30 minutes on that job total cost has gone over £10 (it all takes time!) Replace it 3 times and you may as well have bought the more expensive cable that is more likely to survive. We're often the worst for selling ourselves short. Do you want to spend your time replacing HDMI cables or doing all the other jobs that you never have time to get done, because you're replacing HDMI cables???

There's issues with the Wireless Adaptors - not able to be centrally managed (you need to connect to each one individually to update firmware) and only supports Miracast (Windows 10) - if you want to cast from iOS or OSX (not sure about Chromebooks) this will not work. That said for the price they're great, I usually have one in my toolbag as a "get out of jail" solution (currently connected to my TV so I can watch SMT livestreams in comfort). Regarding HDMI cables - currently we do not have a wireless solution so HDMI / VGA laptop connections are available in all of our rooms. That's around 250 rooms, potentially 9 sessions a day with users connecting and disconnecting. HDMI cable failure is an issue, but only a couple a term across the whole site. If you've experienced a high rate of failures I'd be looking to see what brand of cables you're using, for heavy duty use such as this going with a reputable brand is worth the extra cash (we only use either Kramer, Extron or Van Damme for laptop connections).

When you're mixing aspect ratios the only way to ensure the screen is filled on both devices means geometry is going to suffer on one of the devices. In your case 16:9 would look squashed on the projector, whereas 4:3 would look stretched on the monitor. There is no way to output 2 different resolutions from the PC on one VGA connection, even if you had 2 outputs duplicating the desktop would still give the same results. Until you can match the aspect ratios between projector and monitor Extended Desktop is the only option available if you want to maintain geometry.

I'd be concerned about the "decent sound" part of your request. That's basically a huge echo chamber you've got your speakers in when the boards are open for screen use. Seriously suggest getting separate speakers fitted outside of the rails.

I'm sorry to say it like this but your biggest issue is projectors hanging over pupils heads that have been bodge mounted with makeshift, homemade, unrated adaptors and as you have correctly identified, incorrect mounting points. It does sound like you want to rectify this but I would be stressing this as the primary reason you need funding to upgrade all of your rooms. Make it a Health and Safety issue, not a technology issue. Worst case all the projectors come down and teachers have to make do without. Best case you get asked "how can we fix this, quickly?" = £2.5k per room for a new panel. As for the signal chain, I would look at either active HDMI cables or possibly the newer Fibre stuff. A 15m Van Damme Active HDMI cable costs £70 from CPC ex VAT, supports full resolution and isn't likely to fail like any balun or converter can. Worth consideration IMO!

I think Teams will soon be releasing NDI streams for participants, so you could just have the teacher feed recorded as its own source in OBS (with the NDI plugin)

OBS will happily record and stream if you need it, free to use and highly regarded in the gaming community. Regarding the Unions we have a document that specifically says recordings will not be used for competency assessment, our academics seem happy with it.

That looks to be an adjustable height setup, so probably quite specialist to the manufacturer. I'd be looking back to whoever did the original install to find out the manufacturer and get their advice, or ultimately get a brand new mount. And if the purse string holders start moaning about cost, ask them if they'd rather spend a few hundred getting it right, or face a lawsuit when a bodged mount fails and a projector hits a pupil on the head. (Do a risk assessment, chances of it happening are low, but potential for injury is anything up to fatal. That focuses the mind quickly.) I do not recommend getting a sheet of metal and making your own plates up. I appreciate the can do attitude, but by doing this if it does fail you are liable, unless you can certify that the work you've done is rated to the load required. Please do it right, protect yourself and your students.

I try to buy an OS map of the local area when I go on holiday to another part of the UK - just to look at and see the lie of the land, as it were. Often there's little places to find that you'll never see on Google. For driving though I'm firmly in the TomTom camp - though I have TomTom Live inbuilt to the car so it's quite easy. Usually on silent when navigating though so the music doesn't get interrupted every 10 minutes and often just as a reference, and very useful for speed camera alerts!

If you're using a decent wireless casting device (ie not Chromecast or Apple TV) it should be able to generate a PIN that is displayed on the screen, this needs to be entered to cast to the device. This PIN can usually be set to change at regular time intervals, so if you have different classes in the same room it prevents users from outside the room connecting.

Looks like a good solution - though I'd recommend taking the output of the Scarlett and putting that into the ATEM mini, so the PC only sees the ATEM switcher - makes it easier for configuration?

If you're not adverse to adapting also consider SDI cameras, a decent SDI > HDMI adapter costs around £40 inc. VAT (Blackmagic Design MC SDI-HDMI). However at £50 budget for the camera I think you'll either be looking at CCTV cameras or basic webcams with USB extenders!

Lots of different ways to do this. Ceiling mic arrays, boundary mics... Lots of different ideas. One thing I would probably suggest now is using microphones that can be installed rather than handled. A few months ago I would be pushing Catchbox as a fun way of doing this, in the current climate now I'm not so sure! ALSO - consider echo cancellation. the microphone will pick up the teachers audio from the speakers, pushing it back and creating an echo or, at worst, feedback. Some VC software has echo cancellation inbuilt, some does not!

Can't recommend anything off the top of my head - I just want to mention the maximum length of HDMI and if you're looking to wall mount the camera in a position where it has good field of view you're likely to be exceeding the length by quite a margin, or having to use an active cable which will cost more than the camera you're looking to purchase.

OBS could be rolled out quite easily if you setup the scenes as a standard solution then export the scene collection for teachers to use. If you're happy using plugins OBS ninja is a great way of getting camera sources (tablets, phones etc) into OBS without extra hardware. As for big glowing buttons have a look at Elgato Stream Deck - £140 buys 15 backlit configurable buttons. Start / Pause / Stop recording, show desktop, show camera, PiP options... lots of possibilities!